What did the Kardashians do before Keeping Up with the Kardashians?

The Kardashians are household names now, but what about before Keeping Up with the Kardashians?

On Oct. 14, 2007, reality television was changed forever as E! Network aired the first episode of a little series called Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Although the show was initially written off by critics, it quickly grabbed the attention of viewers who were immediately struck by the dramatic and over-the-top family.

Fast forward to 2020, Keeping Up with the Kardashians is now in its eighteenth season and the Kardashian family has built a truly incredible empire.

Kris Jenner has become known as one of Hollywood’s greatest managers (or momagers as we lovingly think of her). Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney Kardashian have each launched successful lifestyle and fashion brands (among other ventures). Kendall Jenner is one of the most sought after models in the industry. And Kylie Jenner has managed to become Hollywood’s richest stars (even if not a billionaire).

What did Kim Kardashian and the Kardashians do before Keeping Up with the Kardashians?

The Kardashians have become household names thanks to Keeping Up with the Kardashians, but what did the family do before their big reality TV break?

First, let’s make it clear that we’ll be focusing largely on Kim, Kourtney, Khloe, and mom Kris Jenner as Kylie and Kendall were just teens when the series first premiered. As such, their big break came with the launch of the series which set them on the career paths they ultimately pursued.

So just what exactly were the Kardashians up to before their big break came?

As Kris has revealed in past interviews, she previously worked as an American Airlines flight attendant. While it’s unclear when she stepped away from her position as a flight attendant, Kris also got some managerial experience under her belt before the series while helping with endorsement deals and career-related items for her former spouse Olympian Bruce Jenner (who came out as a transgender woman in 2015, taking the name Caitlyn).

Longtime Keeping Up with the Kardashians fans will know that prior to breaking into the big leagues Kim, Kourtney, and Khloe made a living for themselves working in retail through their boutique DASH. In fact, DASH was at the heart of many early seasons as well as many of the show’s various spinoff series.

That’s not to say the sisters hadn’t also attempted to break into the industry before E! took a chance on their family. In fact, both Kim and Kourtney happened to make appearances on a few random reality shows.

Have you been keeping up with the Kardashians since the beginning of their time as reality royalty? Are you surprised to see how far they’ve come since their early days before the series took off and helped provide them with a platform to launch their various career ventures?